While I can appreciate the "show, don't tell" rule it was easy, for me at least, to lose focus and not give some videos my full attention just given the number of videos, repeated sources, etc. I think the comments helped me at least have something to look for when watching.

I don't know if you can judge someone's use of theme based solely on how readily apparent their concept was. Not for those that went off the beaten path a little bit, and especially because these videos were made in a week. Works of art they are not.

I'll just say if you wait until after to read the comments, I sincerely hope you are watching these more than once.

Editing was ok. Cute video. Too many white crossfades. I would comment on it more but I feel like people already addressed everything worth mentioning. Good effort, keep it up.

Video 2:

Spoiler :

Don't know how to feel about this one. I like that it's not mushy like most other entries but at the same time it's kind of..strange. Idk I guess that at the end of the day I enjoyed this vid a lot more than some of the other entries I hope this gets you a spot in the next round, I would like to see how you deal with the next theme.

Video 3:

Spoiler :

K-On cuteness. That's about all it is. Doesn't really stick out as anything special, editing is decent but bland. Next time try to make the editing a little more dynamic

Video 4:

Spoiler :

Everything is well-edited but its biggest flaw is not being longer. Draws you in but lets you down hard. Good video though

Video 5:

Spoiler :

Didn't particularly like this one. It was edited well and it'll easily make it past this round, but I just can't get it into it. I can see why everyone liked it but in my opinion it's a bad mix of song/source. Good job, nonetheless. Props for trying something original despite only having a week to edit.Other notes: 1:03-1:10 is bland and the sync is kinda strange. Could've easily gone without the "falling girl" scene .

Video 6:

Spoiler :

One of my favorites from the round, not a fan of text in amvs but the feels make it stand out Editing is simple but effective. I would elaborate more but it's not necessary for this one.

Video 7:

Spoiler :

Pretty cool. The plot (could have used "sadder" scenes) and sync needed some work but I like it. Paco's comment covers it pretty well

Video 8:

Spoiler :

I like the song choice, didn't like the editing so much though. Seems really rushed

Video 9:

Spoiler :

Watched it and didn't get it. Read the comments and I get it now...but the plot is still a bit weak and the video as a whole could have been a lot better with a bit more effort. Though to be fair, one week is not enough time to perfect a video. With that said, it's still one of my favorites from the round. I like the mood of the song and I think that Kara no Kyoukai fits it rather well.

Video 10:

Spoiler :

Good stuff. The letterboxed clips were really distracting, they pop in and out randomly and the video as a whole would've been a lot better without them. The dance scene at 1:15 was amusing but it was dragged out a little too much. I also found that parts of the video progressed rather slowly and didn't really match the pace of the song as well as they could have. Take 1:54-1:59 for example, the clips look amusing enough but they seem randomly placed and ill synced. A little more sync would have definitely gone a long way. The lip sync was good for the most part so that's a plus One of the better videos of the round, for sure. Good job I look forward to seeing your next video as this will easily earn you a spot in the next round :3.

Video 11:

Spoiler :

I agree with Paco, the editing is a little bland. That said, I really like this one cause of the "lazy" aspect. Got super lazy just watching it...which is both good and bad haha. The editing was simple but effective enough to get the point across . The start of the song reminded me of Trigun, love that show

It's Sunday, perfect timing to see all these videos! Here are my comments

Spoiler :

1: Awww this was really sweet! Loved it! I think overall, your video flows really well. There were some cases where you passed from a night scene to a daylight scene, and those light flashes you used here and there would have helped you in these kind of situations. The theme is very clear, so nothing to say about that! I think your video would be even more perfect, if you inserted more xmas romance like scenes, mostly because some of those were all from the same episode/moment which makes it feel a bit repetitive? But, in a week, it's already awesome that you were able to gather so many videos in one single video! (Kudos for using Sekaiichi ;D - we should be friends! lol)

2: Despite all the gore going around (sorry I'm easily impressed by these things ;_;), I was able to watch it all, but...I didn't get it? I mean, I don't see your theme here. Neither Winter or Spring? And tbh, I didn't understand the story either, at some points it was really confusing. I think you tried to represent Winter as the sad/horror moments and the Spring as the aftermath? But that wasn't clear at all I don't think the song helped you either.

3: Your video is quite adorable, I mean, it's K-On, so of course it's adorable! I don't think you pulled the theme well though your focus was too much on the girls and the music and not really on their trip to London, which during winter is LIKE FREAKING COLD. I think you should have explored more their trip to London, where if I remember correctly, the movie also shows a lot of wintery scenes. ^^'

4: WHY IS THIS SO SHORT?! WHY THE SUDDEN ENDING?! UGH. Ok, calm down. First, 1000x Kudos for the song!!! Second, love the beginning. The concept is amazing, because seriously ever student relates to this. The countdown to Summer Vacations... you have a good start with this video and I really hope you get to complete it!

5: OH I love this! Great idea! Ahah it was actually quite funny! I can tell you I wasn't bored at all while watching it ;d and that usually tends to happen when I never saw the anime!

6: Aw why so short? I still enjoyed it though, but I wish it was longer

7: Oh god, no you didn't! It's not okay to use this song, nope, no. ;_; Ok seriously, I loved it. My heart was shrinking with every scene! This could also be titled as "The Winter We Fell in Love". The feeling of winter and memories was very clear!

8: Another video that suddenly ends I don't understand why you say this is Spring though... I clearly see Summer? Despite that, I think you had a really good flow and I like how you went along with the lyrics ;p literally!

9: I liked this video, but I don't think it represents all the seasons like it's described? Maybe just Winter?

10: FAVORITE! Love the concept, the flow, the story and the lip sync. Just genius!

11: LOL, a painful hot Summer day in one video! I think the song really helped you here. You picked funny scenes that went along with really well! I think some scenes flowed better than others, but overall I thought it was quite funny ^^

12: OMG I feel like I was trolled?! AHAH! I wasn't expecting the Harlem Shake at all! It seemed so sweet and wintery and then... puff! Ahah!

13: I like where this was going! I mean, it's not that I don't mind the 5cm, but I would have liked to see other more fitting anime for this. One that fits all that magic you were trying to give us. I think that would be a really cool video, to show Spring blossoming in a magic way? So yeah I would have used more Spring scenes, but more mystical!

14: I liked this one too! I think you used too much Clannad and 5cm though, and when you're doing an anime mix you need to balance your animes a bit more. I love the ending with the violin, I set up a quite nice atmosphere!

15: This is quite and well edited. The theme was very clear, but and I'm sorry if this sounds harsh.. it's just another 5cm video

16: Perfect way to tell a story with this kind of theme, where the song is a very important to key to it! Kudos for you! Also, great anime choice for this!

17: Aw another Summer love story! The theme is clearly represented and your song helped too! The flow is quite good too

18: I think that for those that never saw this episode, your ending wasn't quite clear on how they ended up together. Yes, it's a winter vs spring moments, but why? Why are they together in spring and not in winter? I think these would be fixed if (and this is just an idea) the winter scenes were the present and the spring scenes were his dreams. But for the dreams to be clearer for the viewer, you would need to adjust the coloring, to add a little blur or some glow or even a white vignette like you did in the middle. Something that distinguishes the present from the dreams, you know?

19: Whoa, I really enjoyed this! Your transitions are awesome and the flow was amazing. Also, there's no doubt that the theme is Summer! Good job

20: Is this a video from Shin trolling Sommer? ahah Anywayyyy, theme wise I think the song quite stablished that the season is Spring, because of the May thing... though maybe you could have I dunno, show some more springy sings? I'm sure there are scenes like that, if you know what I mean ._.

21: This was nice, well edited. The theme is clear, but that's it. There's no story

22: This video ended up too abruptly and I didn't see the season represented. Actually, no season at all... It's just an action video, a good one, but that's it? Where was the theme?

23: This is a good one, but I don't really see a season represented... I see life and people and the world, but that's too vague for a season theme.

24: Aw I really enjoyed this video! So tempted to finally watch this anime too! ^^ I think your song helped to settle the seasons, so good choice!

25: I'm surprised that this is the first video to actually use this song lol. I think the song screams Summer and so did your scene choices. There were some scenes that didn't quite flow well, but other than it's a cool video!

26: Aw I really like this! Quite entertaining, the story and how you told it. Theme is clear enough! I don't know if this is the dropbox player messing up, but it seemed that the quality was a bit low.

27: Your video is cool, though it's lacking on some things for it not be too boring? Some zooms would had been nice, some of your hard cuts are too abrupt and those are breaking the flow. Also, some parts were a bit slow imo. I love the song, but some scenes felt too random?

28: LOL How to do a action video with a winter theme! The sync was very amusing too ;D

29: Aw I still need to watch this anime! Really liked your video, the flow was great and very summerlike.

30: All the Clannad feels! I enjoyed this, but what I see is the girls from Clannad and Tomoya. The seasons are there, but just barely... know what I mean?

Uff, I'm done! My favorite is still number 10. I just love how good and original it is!

Here are some thoughts and advises for whoever wants to read:

Spoiler :

My first advise for whoever passes to the next round: please try to be original. On such a general theme like this, your video will only stand out if it's original! I have nothing against 5cm videos (I love the anime), but for a contest like this and especially at the first round, to use such an overused anime is quite a risk. When you get the theme, find a concept first. It will make things easier for you!

For example, for this theme, here's how I would think about it. What season do I want to represent? Do I want to show more than one season? So I have my season(s), now how am I going to stand out from 29 more editors? For Spring it's more likely that people will do romance videos, for Winter people will probably do more melancholic videos, Summer will most likely have that fun party mood and I'm not sure if people will even use Autumn alone, unless it's a mix. So you figure out what people will most likely do, so you need to run away from that! And now that I have my idea, let's pick an anime or more than one. Let's make sure I know the anime well (this is debatable) or if I'm going to use more than one, google will be my friend to help me find the scenes I want (and fast). About picking the song, let's make sure it fits the mood of my season and the anime(s) I picked.

These are just simple guidelines I usually think about before editing, and it helps a lot! I know time is a key factor, but you have to also think about your video. You can think about it while at work or school (ok I know it's bad but still ;D) or while you're going somewhere. It also helps if you take a look at the titles of the themes and just try to imagine what the real theme will be. Think about what would you do, what song would you use, prepare your footage, etc. You will edit 10x faster if you already know what you want and how you want it. Random pretty scenes for a contest like this are not enough! You have to stand out as much as you can, that's the whole point to get you to the end of this!

I'm not saying don't edit 5cm videos or ramdom spring scenes, but save those kind of videos to other times. Because even if your editing is superb and perfect, your video will just be that. You want it to be way more!

It's Sunday, perfect timing to see all these videos! Here are my comments

Spoiler :

1: Awww this was really sweet! Loved it! I think overall, your video flows really well. There were some cases where you passed from a night scene to a daylight scene, and those light flashes you used here and there would have helped you in these kind of situations. The theme is very clear, so nothing to say about that! I think your video would be even more perfect, if you inserted more xmas romance like scenes, mostly because some of those were all from the same episode/moment which makes it feel a bit repetitive? But, in a week, it's already awesome that you were able to gather so many videos in one single video! (Kudos for using Sekaiichi ;D - we should be friends! lol)

2: Despite all the gore going around (sorry I'm easily impressed by these things ;_;), I was able to watch it all, but...I didn't get it? I mean, I don't see your theme here. Neither Winter or Spring? And tbh, I didn't understand the story either, at some points it was really confusing. I think you tried to represent Winter as the sad/horror moments and the Spring as the aftermath? But that wasn't clear at all I don't think the song helped you either.

3: Your video is quite adorable, I mean, it's K-On, so of course it's adorable! I don't think you pulled the theme well though your focus was too much on the girls and the music and not really on their trip to London, which during winter is LIKE FREAKING COLD. I think you should have explored more their trip to London, where if I remember correctly, the movie also shows a lot of wintery scenes. ^^'

4: WHY IS THIS SO SHORT?! WHY THE SUDDEN ENDING?! UGH. Ok, calm down. First, 1000x Kudos for the song!!! Second, love the beginning. The concept is amazing, because seriously ever student relates to this. The countdown to Summer Vacations... you have a good start with this video and I really hope you get to complete it!

5: OH I love this! Great idea! Ahah it was actually quite funny! I can tell you I wasn't bored at all while watching it ;d and that usually tends to happen when I never saw the anime!

6: Aw why so short? I still enjoyed it though, but I wish it was longer

7: Oh god, no you didn't! It's not okay to use this song, nope, no. ;_; Ok seriously, I loved it. My heart was shrinking with every scene! This could also be titled as "The Winter We Fell in Love". The feeling of winter and memories was very clear!

8: Another video that suddenly ends I don't understand why you say this is Spring though... I clearly see Summer? Despite that, I think you had a really good flow and I like how you went along with the lyrics ;p literally!

9: I liked this video, but I don't think it represents all the seasons like it's described? Maybe just Winter?

10: FAVORITE! Love the concept, the flow, the story and the lip sync. Just genius!

11: LOL, a painful hot Summer day in one video! I think the song really helped you here. You picked funny scenes that went along with really well! I think some scenes flowed better than others, but overall I thought it was quite funny ^^

12: OMG I feel like I was trolled?! AHAH! I wasn't expecting the Harlem Shake at all! It seemed so sweet and wintery and then... puff! Ahah!

13: I like where this was going! I mean, it's not that I don't mind the 5cm, but I would have liked to see other more fitting anime for this. One that fits all that magic you were trying to give us. I think that would be a really cool video, to show Spring blossoming in a magic way? So yeah I would have used more Spring scenes, but more mystical!

14: I liked this one too! I think you used too much Clannad and 5cm though, and when you're doing an anime mix you need to balance your animes a bit more. I love the ending with the violin, I set up a quite nice atmosphere!

15: This is quite and well edited. The theme was very clear, but and I'm sorry if this sounds harsh.. it's just another 5cm video

16: Perfect way to tell a story with this kind of theme, where the song is a very important to key to it! Kudos for you! Also, great anime choice for this!

17: Aw another Summer love story! The theme is clearly represented and your song helped too! The flow is quite good too

18: I think that for those that never saw this episode, your ending wasn't quite clear on how they ended up together. Yes, it's a winter vs spring moments, but why? Why are they together in spring and not in winter? I think these would be fixed if (and this is just an idea) the winter scenes were the present and the spring scenes were his dreams. But for the dreams to be clearer for the viewer, you would need to adjust the coloring, to add a little blur or some glow or even a white vignette like you did in the middle. Something that distinguishes the present from the dreams, you know?

19: Whoa, I really enjoyed this! Your transitions are awesome and the flow was amazing. Also, there's no doubt that the theme is Summer! Good job

20: Is this a video from Shin trolling Sommer? ahah Anywayyyy, theme wise I think the song quite stablished that the season is Spring, because of the May thing... though maybe you could have I dunno, show some more springy sings? I'm sure there are scenes like that, if you know what I mean ._.

21: This was nice, well edited. The theme is clear, but that's it. There's no story

22: This video ended up too abruptly and I didn't see the season represented. Actually, no season at all... It's just an action video, a good one, but that's it? Where was the theme?

23: This is a good one, but I don't really see a season represented... I see life and people and the world, but that's too vague for a season theme.

24: Aw I really enjoyed this video! So tempted to finally watch this anime too! ^^ I think your song helped to settle the seasons, so good choice!

25: I'm surprised that this is the first video to actually use this song lol. I think the song screams Summer and so did your scene choices. There were some scenes that didn't quite flow well, but other than it's a cool video!

26: Aw I really like this! Quite entertaining, the story and how you told it. Theme is clear enough! I don't know if this is the dropbox player messing up, but it seemed that the quality was a bit low.

27: Your video is cool, though it's lacking on some things for it not be too boring? Some zooms would had been nice, some of your hard cuts are too abrupt and those are breaking the flow. Also, some parts were a bit slow imo. I love the song, but some scenes felt too random?

28: LOL How to do a action video with a winter theme! The sync was very amusing too ;D

29: Aw I still need to watch this anime! Really liked your video, the flow was great and very summerlike.

30: All the Clannad feels! I enjoyed this, but what I see is the girls from Clannad and Tomoya. The seasons are there, but just barely... know what I mean?

Uff, I'm done! My favorite is still number 10. I just love how good and original it is!

Here are some thoughts and advises for whoever wants to read:

Spoiler :

My first advise for whoever passes to the next round: please try to be original. On such a general theme like this, your video will only stand out if it's original! I have nothing against 5cm videos (I love the anime), but for a contest like this and especially at the first round, to use such an overused anime is quite a risk. When you get the theme, find a concept first. It will make things easier for you!

For example, for this theme, here's how I would think about it. What season do I want to represent? Do I want to show more than one season? So I have my season(s), now how am I going to stand out from 29 more editors? For Spring it's more likely that people will do romance videos, for Winter people will probably do more melancholic videos, Summer will most likely have that fun party mood and I'm not sure if people will even use Autumn alone, unless it's a mix. So you figure out what people will most likely do, so you need to run away from that! And now that I have my idea, let's pick an anime or more than one. Let's make sure I know the anime well (this is debatable) or if I'm going to use more than one, google will be my friend to help me find the scenes I want (and fast). About picking the song, let's make sure it fits the mood of my season and the anime(s) I picked.

These are just simple guidelines I usually think about before editing, and it helps a lot! I know time is a key factor, but you have to also think about your video. You can think about it while at work or school (ok I know it's bad but still ;D) or while you're going somewhere. It also helps if you take a look at the titles of the themes and just try to imagine what the real theme will be. Think about what would you do, what song would you use, prepare your footage, etc. You will edit 10x faster if you already know what you want and how you want it. Random pretty scenes for a contest like this are not enough! You have to stand out as much as you can, that's the whole point to get you to the end of this!

I'm not saying don't edit 5cm videos or ramdom spring scenes, but save those kind of videos to other times. Because even if your editing is superb and perfect, your video will just be that. You want it to be way more!

For the record (and because I'm sure it will be asked), the judges have until 11:59 PM CST tonight to get in their scores. I'll tally the scores tomorrow morning and release the second round as well as the round 1 results at the same time. So no need to stay up late tonight, official scores/stuff won't be up until tomorrow morning my time.